Apparatus for filling a container



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APPARATUS FOR FILLING A CONTAINER Filed Nov. 1, 1962 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Rue/ma Mum;

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APPARATUS FOR FILLING A CONTAINER Filed Nov. 1, 1962 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 i729 F/G.6. 4 f w 2;

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United States Patent 3,241,289 APPARATUS FOR FILLING A CONTAINER Desmond Walter Molins, Deptford, London, England, assignor to The Molins Organisation, Limited Filed Nov. 1, 1962, Ser. No. 234,592

Claims priority, application Great Britain, Nov. 3, 1961,

39,46 8/ 6 1 12 Claims. (Cl. 53-236) This invention concerns improvements in or relating to apparatus for filling a container with rod like articles (e.g. with cigarettes fed from a cigarette-making machine).

It has been customary to feed cigarettes produced on a continuous rod cigarette-making machine by hand into containers for storage or onward transit to the next stage of manufacturing operation, usually packing. With the advent of higher speed cigarette-making machines, hand feeding into containers has proved to be unsatisfactory in that it has become diflicult for one operator to keep pace with one machine, whilst more than one operator is costly in wages and in additional floor space required. Many mechanisms have been devised for automatically filling the cigarettes produced into containers but they have mostly suffered from disadvantages such as being bulky, and, therefore, of being wasteful of floor space and of not being able to fill a container with a substantially exact number of cigarettes.

According to the present invention there is provided container filling apparatus for use with a continuous rod cigarette-making machine, for feeding cigarettes to a container in which they are stacked in a desired number of rows, each row containing a desired quantity of cigarettes, comprising a hopper to receive cigarettes and to distribute them to the top of vanes extending downwards from the bottom of the hopper, the cigarettes forming columns between the vanes, a plate having locating means on its upper surface, adapted to receive the bottom available cigarette of each column and to retain them by the cating means so that the cigarettes form a first array with their longiutdinal axes parallel, each cigarette being spaced apart from adjacent cigarettes, oscillating means to move the plate transversely of the direction of the longitudinal axes of the cigarettes on the plate so that the next available cigarette at the bottom of each column comes to rest in a second array on the plate, the cigarettes of the second array alternating with the position of those of the first array, and transfer means to move cigarettes in the direction of their longitudinal axes, from the plate to the container which is positioned adjacent the plate.

The apparatus may comprise alternating means to vary the quantity of cigarettes in alternate rows in the container so that each row varies from the immediately adjacent rows by one cigarette. The cigarettes forming the first array may constitute half a row in which the cigarettes are separated by a distance equal to the cigarette diameter, and the cigarettes forming the second array complete the row, the complete row then being moved by the transfer means acting in timed relationship with the oscillating means into the container. The cigarettes forming the first and second arrays may each constitute a complete row in which the longitudinal axes of adjacent cigarettes in a row are spaced apart by a distance equal to the cigarette diameter multiplied by the square root of three. The oscillating means may move the plate after the formation of each row a distance equal to the radius of the cigarettes. The transfer means may be .adapted to move only one row to the container or to move at least two rows of cigarettes simultaneously from the plate to the container.

The alternating means may comprise a blade movable in a horizontal plane in such a way that it is moved "ice under an outside pair of vanes so as to prevent every fourth cigarette of the column between the said pair of vanes from moving downwards while it is so positioned or an outside pair of vanes having their top ends blanked off to prevent the entry of a cigarette there-between and a plunger, movable horizontally in timed relationship to the plate, to insert a cigarette between said pair of vanes so that alternate complete rows on the plate contain one extra cigarette. One of the said pair of vanes may have a hinged portion to enable a cigarette to be inserted between the said pair of vanes by the plunger. The alternating means may also comprise one outside vane extending downwards to a distance less than a cigarette diameter from the plate, all the other vanes extending downwards to a distance greater than a cigarette diameter from the plate.

Further according to the invention there is provided apparatus for moving rod-like articles from the bottom of vertically disposed vanes, between which they are stacked in columns, to a desired position in rows, each alternate row being staggered from its immediately adjacent row, comprising an oscillatable plate positioned below the vanes having retaining means to hold the bottom cigarette of each column in a first array in which the cigarettes are spaced apart with their longitudinal axes parallel, the plate being movable in a direction transverse to the longitudinal axes of the cigarettes so that a second array can be received with the cigarettes of the second array being received between the positions occupied by the cigarettes of the first array, and transfer means to move cigarettes from the plate to the said desired position.

Apparatus according to the invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is an end view partly in section of mechanism for filling cigarettes into a container,

FIGURE 2 is a section through FIGURE 1 along the line II-II of FIGURE 1,

FIGURES 3 and 4 are views of part of the mechanism of FIGURE 1 in subsequent stages of operation,

FIGURE 5 is an end view of the cigarettes as filled into the container by the above illustrated mechanism,

FIGURES 6 to 8 are part of the mechanism of another embodiment shown in different stages of operation,

FIGURE 9 is an end view of a container partly filled according to the further embodiment,

FIGURES l0 and 11 are views of part of the mechanism of a still further embodiment.

One embodiment of the invention is shown in FIG- URES 15, in which 1 and 2 are side walls of a hopper. The bottom of the hopper is open and communicates with vertically disposed vanes 3 which are arranged in pairs. The spacing between each vane of a pair, 4 and 5, is slightly greater than the diameter of a cigarette C which is to be accommodated between them. Rods 6 of octagonal section block the space between adjacent pairs of vanes. The rods 6 are in reciprocating rotation through approximately as shown by the double headed arrow in FIGURE 1. V

A bracket 7 is positioned beneath the bottom of the vanes 3 and is recessed to accommodate a plate 8. The plate 8 is provided with locating means to hold the cigarettes, in this case being flutes 9, these flutes being spaced and having profiles so that when filled with cigarettes each cigarette is in longitudinal contact with the cigarettes adjacent to it, as shown in FIGURES 3 and 4. Attached to the bottom of the plate 8 is a projection 10 on which a roller 11 is free to rotate. The roller 11 is held against the face of crown cam 12 keyed to a shaft 13 by means of a retaining spring which is not shown. Thus, as the cam 12 rotates on the shaft 13 in the direction of the arrow in FIGURE 1, the plate oscillates on the recessed surface of the bracket 7 in a direction transversely of the longitudinal axis of the cigarettes carried in the flutes 9.

In FIGURE 2, a plunger 14 is operated in timed relationship to the movement of the shaft 13 by means not shown, so as to move to the right and thus to eject cigarettes C from the flutes of the plate 8, the width (i.e. its dimension in a plane at right angles to the plane of the paper in FIGURE 2) of the plunger 14 being suflicient to eject all the cigarettes positioned in the flutes 9 of the plate 8. A container immediately adjacent to the plate 8 is carried on a carrier 16 secured to a link 17 of a chain conveyor 18 which is moving in the direction of the arrow in FIGURE 2 at such a speed that the container moves downwards by the amount required to accommodate one row of cigarettes for each plunger stroke.

Since the plate 8 is oscillatable below the vanes 3, the bottom cigarette of each column held by the pairs of vanes 4 and 5 falls into whatever flute is presented. Thus in the position shown in FIGURE 1, when the roller 11 is riding against a lowest portion 19 of the cam 12, cigarettes fall into alternate flutes. In FIGURE 3, the roller 11 is riding against the highest portion of the cam 12 and the plate 8 is consequently moved to the limit of its right hand movement so that the unfilled flutes are now positioned below the pairs of vanes 4 and 5, thus allowing the unifilled flutes to be filled. In FIGURE 5, it will be seen that the cigarettes of alternate rows R R etc. nest between the cigarettes of the row below, R R etc. i.e. that alternate rows are displaced by half the diameter of the cigarettes from the immediately adjacent rows. In order to obtain this nesting of alternate rows, the flutes 9 of the plate 8 must be displaced by half the cigarette diameter when alternate rows are being plunged into the container 15. This position is obtained when the roller 11 is riding against an intermediate portion 21 of the face of the crown cam 12, as is shown in FIGURE 4.

In FIGURE 5, it can also be seen that the alternate rows R R etc. contain one cigarette less than the rows below R R etc. In FIGURE 4, a blade 22 is provided, being actuated from the shaft 13 in a manner that is not shown, to hold up the left hand column of cigarettes so that every alternate row contains one less cigarette than the preceding row. It is to be understood that the dimensions of a container determine whether or not alternate rows should contain one cigarette less than adjacent rows. If the width of a container which requires alternate rows to vary by one cigarette is increased by an amount equivalent to half the diameter of the cigarettes, then all rows will contain the same amount of cigarettes and the stop member 22 will not be required.

The operation of the mechanism will now be described.

Cigarettes are fed from a single catcher band of a cigarette-making machine over one of the side walls 1 and 2 or from two catcher bands over both side walls into the hopper. The cigarettes fill up the pairs of vanes 4 and 5, being assisted by the rotational movement of the rods 6, so that columns of cigarettes C are formed between each pair of vanes. It is to be understood, of course, that the vanes need not necessarily be in pairs as in this embodiment. By using material of suitable thickness, single vanes can be substituted for adjacent vanes of adjacent pairs thus eliminating the space between. The pitch of the pairs of vanes is equal to twice the diameter of the cigarettes so that, when the flutes of the plate 8 are correctly positioned beneath the vanes cigarettes drop into alternate flutes.

Before starting the mechanism, the hopper must be allowed to fill with cigarettes so that the columns are fully formed between the pairs of vanes 4 and 5. The mechanism is so interlocked that, on starting, the container 15 is in the correct position shown to receive the first row, R of cigarettes while the plate 8 is in the position shown in FIGURE 1. With the plate in this position the bottom cigarettes B of each column will have fallen on the plate to form a first array of cigarettes in alternate flutes 9. Rotation of the shaft 13 in the direction of the arrow causes the roller 11 to move to the right due to the lift of the cam 12 to its highest portion 20, thus moving the plate 8 in a horizontal plane transversely of the direction of the longitudinal axes of the cigarettes to the position shown in FIGURE 3. As the plate starts moving to its new position the next lowest cigarettes B of each column start to roll over the already located cigarettes B until they come to rest in a second array, the cigarettes of which alternate with those of the first array. In this way a complete row is formed with the cigarettes alternately B and B As the row is completed the plunger 14 (FIG- URE 2) starts to move in the direction of the arrow and to plunge the row into the container 15 where it forms the bottom row R While the plunger 14 moves back the blade 22 moves to the right (see FIGURE 4) and thus prevents the left-hand end column of cigarettes from moving down. When the plunger 14 is clear of the vanes the next lowest cigarettes B of each column except the left hand column drop in to the vacant flutes below each pair of vanes. The roller 11 then returns to a lowest portion 19a of the cam 12 and thus moves the plate 8 in the same plane as already described to the left, thereby causing the next cigarette B to fall into the remaining vacant flutes. Whilst the plate moves to the left the stop member 22 retracts and in so doing allows a cigarette B to fall into the penultimate flute from the left and then 22 is re-inserted. In this way a row is built up containing one cigarette less than the row R already located in the bottom of the container. The plate 8 then moves in the same plane to a mid position, as shown in FIGURE 4, since the roller 11 rides up the intermediate portion 21 of the cam 12. The row so formed is then plunged by the plunger 14 into the container 15 where it becomes the row R nesting into the bottom row R The roller 11 then returns to a lowest portion 19 of the cam thus moving the plate back in the same plane to the left, this movement taking place while the plunger 14 makes its return stroke. The process is then repeated until the container is filled when a quick release mechanism brings the next empty container to the initial starting position.

A further embodiment is shown in FIGURES 6 to 9, in which the spacing of the cigarettes within each row is as disclosed in US. application Serial No. 225,213, filed September 21,1962 i.e. the spacing is equal to the diamettler of the cigarettes multiplied by the square root of t ree.

In this embodiment in which like numerals refer to like parts and referring to FIGURE 6, cigarettes C falls from a hopper, which is not shown, between pairs of vanes 4 and 5 to form columns therein. Beneath these vanes a plate 8 is movable in a horizontal plane transversely of the direction of the longitudinal axis of the cigarettes C over a recessed portion of a bracket 7, the plate being moved in a similar manner to that previously described. The plate is fluted with the pitch of the flutes and the pitch of the pairs of vanes both equal to the diameter of the cigarettes multiplied by the square root of three. A plunger 14 transfers the cigarettes from the plate 8 into a container 15 situated as hereinbefore described and moving downwards.

In this case the details for feeding one less cigarette, if so desired, in alternate rows than in each preceding one differs from those already described. As viewed in FIG- URES 6 to 8 the penultimate pair of vanes 23 and 24 fro-m the right hand side have a plate 25 fitted to their top so that cigarettes cannot form a column between them. A column of cigarettes is formed however between the right hand pair of vanes 24 and 26 whilst the bottom of the common vane 24 is hinged so that one cigarette at a time can be plunged by a plunger 27 through the hinged portion 28 from the pair of vanes 24 and 26 to the pair of vanes 23 and 24.

Inoperation two rows of cigarettes R and R (FIG- URE 9) are plunged from the plate 8 at each stroke of the plunger 14. The position at the end of the plunging stroke is shown in FIGURE 6. As the plunger 14 starts on its return stroke the plunger 27 moves to the left and in so doing moves the bottom cigarette of the column between the vanes 24 and 26 through the hinge 28 to a position between the vanes 23 and 24. The plate 8 is as shown in FIGURE 6 with the flutes in line with the pairs of vanes 4 and 5. Thus on completion of the return stroke of the plunger 14 the position is as shown in FIGURE 7, i.e. with a first array of cigarettes filling the flutes 9, and with the plunger 27 in its extended position holding the column between the vanes 24 and 26. The plate 8 then moves to the left under the influence of the cam, which is not shown with a second array of cigarettes filling positions midway between the positions occupied by the cigarettes of the first array, ie in the spaces on the plate between the cigarettes already filled into the flutes 9. In this embodiment the second array forms a second row on a flat portion or" the plate 7 between each flute. This construction could be modified without aflecting the invention by removing the flat portion whereby the second row would fall into positions midway between and would be supported on, two cigarettes of the row below. The two rows (as shown in FIGURE 8) are then plunged together into the container 15, where they form rows R and R2.

If desired, the plate 8 can be fixed with the relation between the flutes and the centre line of the pairs of vanes as disclosed in US. application Serial No. 225,213 so that first one row fills the empty vanes and the next row the positions midway between adjacent cigarettes, i.e. the empty spaces between the cigarette of the row.

A still further embodiment is shown in FIGURES 10 and 11. A plate 8 which is movable in a horizontal plane at right angle to the longitudinal axes of the cigarettes on a recess in a bracket 7, has flutes which are pitched at a distance equal to the diameter of the cigarette multiplied by the square root of three. Situated above the plate 8 are pairs of fixed vanes 4 and 5, the right hand (as viewed in FIGURES 10 and 11) pair consisting of one vane 4 and an elongated vane 29 which projects alrnost to the plate 8. A plunger 14 is so positioned (FIG- URE 11) that on each plunging stroke two rows of cigarettes are moved longitudinally.

In operation, the plate 8 starts so that its flutes are positioned below the pairs of vanes which have the same pitch as the flutes. The bottom cigarettes of each column thereby fall into the flutes (FIGURE 10). The plate is then moved to the left and the next cigarettes from each column roll into the positions midway between the cigarettes occupying the flutes except for the right hand cigarettes B which rolls between a cigarette B and the end vane 29 (FIGURE 11). The plunger 14 then transfers the two rows formed on the plate 8 into a container 15. As the plunger does not extend in width beyond the cigarette B the cigarette B is left behind. Before the plunger has completed its return stroke the plate 8 again moves to the right and the cigarette B rolls into the flute previously occupied by the cigarette B When the plunger has completed its stroke the bottom cigarettes of all columns except the right hand one again fall into the prepared positions, i.e. flutes and the cycle described is repeated.

In the embodiment illustrated in FIGURES 1 to 5 the cam 12 can be replaced by a fixed roller opposite the roller 11 and by a wedge shaped plunger which oscillates between the two rollers thereby moving the roller 11 and the bracket 7.

What is claimed is:

1. Container filling apparatus for use with a continuous rod cigarette-making machine, for feeding cigarettes to a container in which they are stacked in a desired number of rows, each row containing a desired quantity of cigarettes comprising: a hopper to receive cigarettes and to distribute them to the top of vanes extending downwards from the bottom of the hopper, the cigarettes forming columns between the vanes; a plate having locating means on its upper surface, adapted to receive the bottom available cigarette of each columnand to retain them by the locating means so that the cigarettes form a first array with their longitudinal axes parallel, each cigarette being spaced apart from adjacent cigarettes; oscillating means to move the plate horizontally in a direction transversely of the longitudinal axes of the cigarettes on the plate so that the next available cigarette at the bottom of each column comes to rest in a second array on the plate, the cigarettes of the second array, alternating with the position of those of the first array; and transfer means to move cigarettes in the direction of their longitudinal axes from the plate to the container, which is positioned adjacent the plate.

2. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1, comprising alternating means to vary the quantity of cigarettes in alternate rows so that each row in the container varies from the immediately adjacent rows by one cigarette.

3. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cigarettes forming the first array constitute half a row in which the cigarettes are separated by a distance equal to the cigarette diameter, and the cigarettes forming the second array complete the row, the complete row then being moved by the transfer means into the container.

4. Apparatus as claimed in claims 1, wherein the cigarettes forming the first and second arrays each constitute a complete row in which the longitudinal axes of adjacent cigarettes in a row are space-d apart by a distance equal to the cigarette diameter multiplied by the square root of three.

5. Apparatus as claimed in claim 4, wherein the oscillating means moves the plate after the formation of each row a distance equal to the radius of the cigarettes.

6. Apparatus as claimed in claim 5, wherein the transfer means is adapted to move only one row to the container.

7. Apparatus as claimed in claim 5, wherein the transfer means is adapted to move at least two rows of cigarettes simultaneously 'from the plate to the container.

8. Apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein the alternating means comprises a blade movable in a horizontal plane in such a way that it is moved under an outside pair of vanes so as to prevent every fourth cigarette of the column between the said outside pair of vanes from moving downwards while it is so positioned.

9. Apparatus as claimed in any of claim 2, wherein the alternating means comprises an outside pair of vanes having their ends blanked off to prevent the entry of a cigarette therebetween and a plunger, movable horizontally, to insert a cigarette between said pair of vanes so that alternate complete rows on the plate contain one extra cigarette.

10. Apparatus as claimed in claim 9, wherein one of the said pair of vanes has a hinged portion to enable a cigarette to be inserted between the said pair of vanes by the plunger.

11. Apparatus as claimed in claim 7, wherein the alternating means comprises one outside vane extending downwards to a distance less than a cigarette diameter from the plate, all of the other vanes extending downward to a distance greater than a cigarette diameter from the plate.

12. Apparatus for moving rod-like articles from the bottom of vertically dipsosed vanes, between which they are stacked in columns, to a desired position in rows, each alternate row being staggered from its immediately adjacent rows, comprising a horizontally oscillatable plate positioned below the vanes having retaining means to hold the bottom cigarette of each column in a first array in which the cigarettes are spaced apart with their longitudinal axes parallel, the plate being movable in a direction transverse to the longitudinal axes of the cigarettes so that a second array can be received with the cigarettes of the second array being received between the positions occupied by the cigarettes of the first array, and transfer means to move cigarettes from the plate to the said desired position.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,927,648 9/1933 Nefl 53150 XR 3,133,623 5/1964 Collins et al 53142 XR FOREIGN PATENTS 528,492 10/1940 Great Britain.

TRAVIS S. MCGEHEE, Primary Examiner.

FRANK E. BAILEY, Examiner.

A. E. FOURNIER, P. H. POI-IL, Assistant Examiners. 

12. APPARATUS FOR MOVING ROD-LIKE ARTICLES FROM THE BOTTOM OF VERTICALLY DISPOSED VANES, BETWEEN WHICH THEY ARE STASCKED IN COLUMNS, TO A DESIRED POSITION IN ROWS, EACH ALTERNATE ROW BEING STAGGERED FROM ITS IMMEDIATELY ADJACENT ROWS, COMPRISING A HORIZONTALLY OSCILLATABLE PLATE POSITIONED BELOW THE VANES HAVING RETAINING MEANS TO HOLD THE BOTTOM CIGARETTE OF EACH COLUMN IN A FIRST ARRAY IN WHICH THE CIGARETTES ARE SPACED APART WITH THEIR LONGITUDINAL AXES PARALLEL, THE PLATE BEING MOVABLE IN A DIRECTION TRANSVERSE TO THE LONGITUDINAL AXES OF THE CIGARETTES SO THAT A SECOND ARRAY CAN BE RECEIVED WITH THE CIGARETTES OF THE SECOND ARRAY BEING RECEIVED BETWEEN THE POSITIONS OCCUPIED BY THE CIGARETTES OF THE FIRST ARRAY, THE TRANSFER MEANS TO MOVE CIGARETTES FROM THE PLATE TO THE SAID DESIRED POSITION. 